Common Admission Test 2025 ( CAT )
Exam On - 30 Nov '25
Shiksha brings to you preparation tips by previous years' CAT toppers. Those preparing for the CAT 2025 exam must read and take learnings from 99 and 100 percentilers to know - how to prepare for CAT 2025. Know key CAT topper tips here.
How to prepare for CAT 2025 - Scoring 100 and 99.99 percentile in CAT exam is not easy. It requires hard work and smart work. Ask any CAT topper and they will tell you that only putting in long hours in studies will not be enough. The hard work must be complemented with strategies that ensure benefits in every phase of exam preparation. So, CAT 2025 aspirants, as you prepare for the exam, learn how to prepare like a topper.
CAT exam preparation plan should be prepared based on one's individual capacity. Every student is different in terms of skills and capabilities. Some students are quick learners, some take time in understanding concepts or memorising formulae. Also, not every student gets the same amount of time to prepare for CAT as others. So, how to prepare for CAT 2025 like a topper?
CAT 2025 exam preparation can be done through coaching or self study. If you choose the latter, you will definitely need CAT topper tips. You must learn from past years’ CAT toppers how they prepared for the exam. Most of the CAT toppers will suggest practicing CAT mock tests in a good number. Many toppers would suggest starting CAT preparation early, whereas some will say focussed study even if started late, will help you sail through.
Most of the CAT toppers of the past five years have studied by self with some guidance from mentors and lots of mock test series. Here are some of them sharing their CAT preparation strategy.
CAT exam is all about developing and using logical reasoning and analytical aptitude accurately without wasting a single second. English comprehension also plays an important role in CAT preparation. So, how to prepare for CAT 2025 exam? Let's see what CAT toppers have to say.
CAT is a demanding exam and the only key to crack it is consistent practice. The more you practice, the better you get trained in handling any type of CAT question paper – difficult, lengthy, tricky or surprise questions. Ask the toppers and they will say in unison – “practice as many mock tests as you can”. For candidates who are planning to appear for CAT 2025, we have compiled preparation strategy by CAT toppers of previous years.
Vagish Nangia
CAT 2024: Vagish Nangia, 100 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
CAT 2024, I started considering CAT seriously in July 2024. Given the responsibilities and workload of the 7th semester, including placements, academics, extra-curricular activities, and projects, I couldn't devote much prep time. However, I focused on understanding the CAT exam, practicing questions for each section, and doing sectional and full-length mock tests.
For VARC, there are two components: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehensions. This section is tricky, but with enough practice, a high score is achievable. The key is to manage reading and attempting the entire comprehension within 7-8 minutes, which can be tough due to the length and requires a lot of practice. For Verbal Ability, understanding the general structure of paragraphs is crucial to identify odd-one-outs and determine where a particular sentence fits in a paragraph.
Also Read: CAT 2025 toppers’ list, interviews and more
CAT 2023: Kartik Bhageria, 99.99 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
Kartik Bhageria
For the DILR section, persistence is a key but it could get a bit tricky. Sometimes, if you just think about a question for another minute the whole question might get solved but in doing that, you might waste time which can be spent on other questions. So, with practice in CAT mocks, you can get a better idea on how to give time to each question set.
For the Quant section, try to attempt the easier questions first and leave the difficult ones. If you are left with time, you can re-attempt those questions but it is mandatory to at least get the easy questions right.
I attempted 35-40 CAT Mocks tests. Mock tests are incredibly crucial as they simulate exam conditions, help manage time effectively, and identify areas of improvement. Analysing mock tests played a pivotal role in refining my strategy. Read full interview
Risshi Agrawal
CAT 2022: Risshi Agrawal, 99.99 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
I started my preparation with VARC subject by identifying 2 out of 4 RCs which are easiest to solve (24 min to solve). Rest focus on the VA aspect. In DILR, start by doing the DI question (often easiest of all) and then focus on 2 of the remaining 3 puzzles. In QA, start filtering the questions as per your strength and attempt them first. For VARC, I read newspapers on a daily basis. I preferred reading topics which were of interest to me like sports and politics. For DILR, I tried to solve a variety of DILR puzzles. My focus was largely towards the LR section since I messed it up the last time. For Quantitative Aptitude, I didn't devote additional time towards it since I was pretty confident in this subject. Read full interview
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CAT 2021: Chirag Gupta, 100 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
Chirag started preparing in March 2021. Talking about his preparations he said, "For VARC, I read a lot in general. You can read anything you like. I read fiction mainly and even that helped me a lot. For DILR, I focused on identifying certain types of sets and getting familiarised with them. I applied this strategy in the mock test and read every set in first five minutes. I began the section by doing the easiest DI set/s, then attempted the easier sets of the LR section. It will ensure that you will always clear the sectional cutoffs. For the Quant section, I focused on getting my basics right at the beginning of the preparations. I focused on doing only easy questions first, and later attempted the harder ones."
"I took about 50-60 CAT mock tests, as I think that it is probably the most important aspect of CAT preparation. My exam day strategy was just to stay calm and not think too much about the results." he told Shiksha. Read Full Interview
CAT 2021: Bir Anmol Singh, 99.94 percentiles shares CAT preparation tips
Bir Anmol had internship commitments so he did not get time to join a coaching institute. He achieved 99.94 percentile by self-study. Talking about his CAT preparation, he said, “I started preparing in April 2021. I solved Arun Sharma sir's CAT books for VARC, LR, DI and Quant. I attempted as many past year CAT questions papers (timed attempt) that I could attempt, on weekends. I used to analyse my shortcomings to improve further.
For Quant and DILR, my academic background helped me a lot. I just practiced and solved many questions without relying on a calculator. For VARC, I read editorials from The Hindu and Mint. Vocabulary was improved after reading "Word Power Made Easy" by Norman Lewis. My VARC strategy was to read more and to improve more. Para jumbles and summary based questions need a lot of practice and critical analysis for understanding the gist of solving such problems.” Read Full Interview
CAT 2020: Kshitiz Singhal, 99.99 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
Kshitiz Singhal started preparing in July. “Being from an engineering background helped me in my preparation as I am good in Quants. I started my preparation by knowing about the CAT exam pattern and syllabus. Once I completed the syllabus, I started taking mock tests. Although I did not enroll into any coaching institute, I bought study materials and took a mock test series from noted institutes for practice purpose,” he said.
Quant was my strong area and Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) was my weak area. To improve the VARC section, I took the help of my seniors who are currently pursuing MBA. They told me to work on fundamentals. I reworked on my approach to solving the question. I also analysed my mock tests in detail and identified the areas where I needed to improve. After following this method, my mock test scores started improving, he added. Read Full Interview
CAT 2019: Somansh Chordia, 100 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
Somansh Chordia practiced a lot of similar questions in VARC together to understand the common types of mistakes that he was committing and this gave a major boost. After that, he just practiced and analysed the section through mock tests. In DILR, solving a few questions of each type and practice through mocks was enough for him.
“Practice was specifically important for increasing the speed since accuracy is generally not a concern in this section,” he said. In QA, training in ABACUS helped him solve questions much faster. Read Full Interview
CAT 2019: Rishi Mittal, 100 percentiler shares CAT preparation tips
Rishi Mittal said, “people have this notion that if you read a lot, you can score well in VARC. I think even a non-reader can score in this section, I haven’t ever read a single novel.” When Rishi started his preparation, he was inconsistent, scoring 62 out of 102 or even 18. His seniors and mentors advised hi, work on RC separately and for each type of question he prepared a strategy. For DILR, he solved TIME and IMS study material. “The more mocks you give the more sets you solve, it’ll get easier for you to crack DILR”, he said.
He practiced a lot for Quant as well. “Similar to DILR, Quant is also experience based. The more you solve [question] the more you learn about new concepts.” Read Full Interview
CAT 2018: Rounak Majumdar, 100 percentiler, shares tips on CAT preparation
22-year-old Rounak Majumdar started CAT preparation in August and would study for 2-3 hours daily. He attempted 30-35 mock test series in total and believes that mock tests conducted by reputed coaching institutions is a must for all CAT aspirants. “My entire preparation was based on taking mock tests. I attempted two mock tests every week and around 40 mock tests in a year. I used to do practice tests on the weekends and analyse my results during the week. Analysing mock tests are more important than actually appearing for them; it helped me understand my shortfalls and device a test strategy,” Rounak said. Read Full Interview
CAT syllabus is vast. It has numerous topics from Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation. Covering the CAT syllabus also includes practicing a variety of sample questions on the topics included. Thus, it requires a lot of time. Candidates must given themselves atleast 3-4 months to cover CAT syllabus and keep in mind the following:
· Check the previous years' CAT papers to know topics which carry more weightage so that you can focus on those topics more.
· List down topicsin order of easy, moderate and tough and allot time to them accordingly.
· Make sure to study about 6-8 hours per day to complete the syllabus 2-3 months before the exam.
· After studying every topic, practice sample questions. Balance theory with practical.
CAT 2018: Swapnil Suman, 100 percentiler, shares tips on CAT preparation
Swapnil Suman, a Mechanical Engineer, attempted about 54 mock tests for CAT preparation. Swapnil attempted CAT for the first time in 2017 but was not satisfied with his performance, so he decided to give it one more shot in 2018. “I started preparation in August and took mocks of popular coaching institutes. I used to give 3-4 mocks on weekdays during evenings and 1-2 mocks on Sundays. In total, I took 54 mocks. Learning from the previous year, I made sure to analyze each mock and observe what mistakes I was making and tried to learn from each mistake. I believe that turned out to be the game changer this time,” Swapnil told Shiksha.
"I always had a strong penchant for puzzles and I treated solving DILR as solving puzzles. This is considered to be the most difficult section in CAT, but if one practices enough number of problems, most questions would seem repetitive and can easily be tackled," he added. Read Full Interview
Also read: How to Prepare for CAT 2024 in 6 Months
CAT 2017: Chhavi Gupta, 100 percentile, shares tips on how to prepare for CAT
Chhavi Gupta, 24, found little time to prepare for CAT as she had a full-time job. She studied mostly on the weekends and joined a coaching institute. From the very beginning, she used to give mock tests at least every other weekend and used to analyse for improvement in performance.
"I used to go to work for 5 days a week, and found almost no time during those days. However, I tried to cut down my relaxing time at night and started waking up a bit earlier to get an extra hour to study in the morning. However on weekends I would solely focus on CAT preparation, which meant cutting down going out and meeting my friends and all, but I had to do it as that was the only time I got for preparation," she said. Read Full Interview
It is difficult but not impossible. If you give yourself a good enough time to improve English comprehension, grammar and vocabulary, you will be able to do it. Yes, a non- English medium student will require longer time for CAT preparation as they will have to start reading and improving English comprehension. So, may be they need to start English preparation for CAT in the second year of graduation, instead of final year (much earlier than English medium students). They may also need two attempts to crack CAT with high percentile. But that's not true for all. If you work hard and study smartly, you will be able to crack it.
To prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, stick to the traditional path of concepts first and practice later. Study English grammar and Verbal Ability first to understand the concept. Then practice a number of sample questions of different kinds to gain confidence, speed and accuracy. For RC passages, develop the habit of reading from early stages. Read books from all walks of life.
Practicing sample Reading Comprehension passages and questions in a crucial part of VARC preparation. This will help you understand the types of questions and RC passages asked in various entrance exams.
As an aspirant, you will be appearing for more than one entrance exam, thus you need to have the practice of different types of RC passages.
CAT Quantitative Aptitude has the potential of 100 percentile if you prepare well. The Quantitative Aptitude topics of CAT are advance level Mathematic topics from Class 9 and 10. So, for any candidate, the foundation is already there, they only need to work on it further.
The important topics of CAT Quantitative Aptitude include Geometry, Ratios and Proportion, Inequalities, Trigonometry, In-equations, Quadratic and Linear Equations, Work and Time, Algebra, Surds and Indices, Percentages, Mensuration, Time-Speed-Distance, Logarithms, Partnership (Accounts), Number System, Square Root and Cube Root, Profit & Loss, Geometric Progression, Probability, Mean-Mode-Median, Binomial theorem, Simple interest and compound interest.
Maximum questions are asked from Arithmetic and Geometry so keep the main focus on these two topic. Understand and memorise the formulas and theorems well, and practice enough questions to be thorough with their application.
CAT 2017: Meet Agrawal, 100 percentile, shares tips on how to prepare for CAT
Meet Agarwal from Surat, scored 100 percentile in CAT 2017. For this Commerce graduate, the best way to prepare for CAT is attempting mock test papers and analyzing them well to ensure you are moving forward.
“For me, attempting and analyzing CAT mock tests was the best way to prepare. So, I took more than 80 mock tests. After each mock, I analyzed the mistakes and maintained an error log. If you simply avoid making the same mistakes again, the performance improves,” he said.
“I had opted for commerce with math at school, so I was quite comfortable with the QA section. But even for non-Math students, the section shouldn’t be seen as something beyond reach. This is because the section does not test your mathematical prowess but your basic aptitude and comfort with numbers. The focus should be on understanding the logic behind each formula,” he added. Read Full Interview
CAT 2017: Madhur Gupta, 100 percentile, shares tips on how to prepare for CAT
Madhur Gupta, one of the toppers of CAT 2017, and A Mechanical Engineering graduate from Delhi Technological University, Delhi started preparing almost a year before the exam, but ramped up his preparation only four months before the exam.
“I started preparing for CAT 2017 from January and joined TIME for coaching. I ramped up my preparation only in August after quitting my job at Amazon, as Operations Manager. I joined a small start-up alongside CAT preparation from August onwards. In the last-three to four months I gave over 70 mock tests, of different mock series. The number of mocks don’t matter alone. What is important is that one attempts variety of questions so that the possibility of surprise questions in the actual exam is negated. To be able to handle surprise questions is important and that can be done only by attempting a wide variety of mock tests,” he said.
For CAT 2019 aspirants, he said, “They should really focus on attempting lot of mocks but do so only at the later stage when they have completed the course. If they start attempting mocks in the initial stages, without completing the course, they will not score well and that will make them anxious. So don’t start with mock test series before you have completed your course." Read Full Interview
| CAT_Mock_Test_1 | CAT_Mock_Test_1_Solutions |
| CAT_Mock_Test_2 | CAT_Mock_Test_2_Solutions |
CAT 2016: Avidipto Chakraborty, 100 percentile, shares his CAT preparation tips
CAT 2016 topper Avidipto Chakraborty also emphasizes on the importance of attempting mock tests. He attempted almost 80 mock tests.
“CAT is a random exam, in the sense that one wouldn’t know what questions will be asked. It is necessary to attempt mocks as they familiarize you with and prepare you for all kinds of scenarios-easy, moderate, difficult, lengthy, vague etc. If you’ve attempted good enough numbers of mocks, nothing will surprise you. It helps you keep your cool while writing the test,” he said.
Another key advice for future CAT aspirants from Avidipto is, “Find people around you who are preparing to take the exam. Be it social media or your own friend circle, connect with people who are doing the same thing as you are, to keep the motivation going." Read Full Interview
CAT 2016: Akshay Mehndiratta, 100 percentile, shares his CAT preparation tips
CAT topper Akshay Mehndiratta feels since it is an aptitude test, what matters is the candidate’s preparation for the exam day. “CAT, I feel is less about knowledge and more about aptitude. And the right way to build that is by practice (mock tests). It is more about how smartly you prepare in the limited time you have. I guess a period of 5-6 months, with concentrated effort for 2-3 days in a week works fine. You would be able to see significant improvement with each passing week.”
About his own preparation strategy for CAT he shared, “Typical of an Engineer, I was quite weak in Verbal and RC Section. So my preparation time on Saturday was basically spent on improving that. I used to prepare from TIME Workbooks, Internet and perhaps Sectional Tests. I won’t say my English has improved considerably, but the desired knowledge in Verbal was gained appropriately." Read Full Interview
Read more interviews of previous years' CAT toppers to get key insights on how to prepare for CAT 2025 exam.
| CAT Toppers |
CAT Topper Interviews |
|---|---|
| Mani Praneeth Chilukuri CAT 2024, 100 percentile |
“In terms of preparation, I started just a few weeks before the exam due to my job and other commitments. I prioritised understanding the exam format, syllabus, and structure through YouTube videos. I then solved a few previous years’ question papers to familiarize myself with the patterns.” Read Praneeth’s full interview |
| Vedant Chandewar CAT 2024, 99.98 percentile |
“I began my preparation in August 2024. Being good at mathematics, I found Quantitative Aptitude (QA) and Logical Reasoning (DILR) relatively easy to prepare for. I joined a coaching institute that provided daily practice questions for these sections, which I diligently solved.” Read Vedant’s full interview |
| Sarthak Jaiswal CAT 2024, 99.97 percentile |
“I personally think that for the DILR section, the mock tests do not really help because every question is unique and there is no set pattern. Only practice can help for the DILR section preparation. Attempting mock tests for this section will not harm the preparation but also not give an edge. For QA and VARC, mock tests are very important.” Read Sarthak’s full interview |
| Riddhi Dugar CAT 2023, 99.91 percentile |
"My overall strategy was to finish the entire syllabus a few months before the CAT. From July, I focused entirely on taking mock tests and sectional tests to maximise my score and have a strategy for D-Day. I completed around 70 mocks from July until the CAT exam day." Read Riddhi's full interview |
| Rounak Tikmani CAT 2023, 99.90 percentile |
I started my preparation properly in May 2023. My preparation strategy was simple build your foundations by having conceptual clarity in the basics of each section. Then It was just mocks every day. I gave around 110 mocks and made sure I spent enough time analyzing them properly. Taking a mock is not as important as analyzing the mocks and improving on your mistakes. Read Rounak's full interview |
| Nisakar Kumar CAT 2023, 99.83 percentile |
"Quant emerged as my strength, whereas DILR presented a challenge. To address my weakness in DILR, I invested considerable time in understanding the question types and engaged in extensive practice until they became more intuitive. Simultaneously, I dedicated time to revising and practising Quant to maintain a solid grasp. I considered myself decent in VARC." Read Nisakar's full interview |
| Free VARC Questions with Answers for Practice | Free DILR Questions with Answers for Practice | Free Quantitative Aptitude Questions with Answers for Practice |
Q: What is the ideal time to prepare for CAT 2025?
Q: How much time should I spend in a day on CAT preparation?
Q: Is self-study enough to crack CAT exam?
Q: Why is it important to join a coaching institute for CAT preparation?
Q: What is the best CAT study material?
Q: How many CAT mock tests should I practice?
Q: Which section of CAT has maximum weightage?
Q: How to prepare for VARC section of CAT 2025 exam?
Q: How to prepare for DILR section of CAT 2025 exam?
Q: How to prepare for Quantitative Aptitude section of CAT exam 2025?
Q: What are the main topics of CAT Quantitative Aptitude?
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Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 4 days ago
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Yes, CAT syllabus is difficult to crack if you do not have enough time. There are three subjects in CAT- VARC, DILR and Quantitative Aptitude. Most of the candidates find RC passages tough to crack. In Quants, Arithmetic, Algebra and Geometry pose significant challenge during preparation. In DILR, Reasoning questions often turnout to be tricky and confusion.